Amusing Monday: Delving into a grain of sand

Sand is widespread on beaches throughout the world. But if you
get the chance to look really, really close, you are likely to see
colorful rocks, bits of shell and other natural and man-made
materials.

Every grain of sand is virtually unique, but when similar types
come together, we find ourselves walking on beaches that vary from
a finely ground silt to pebbles that are easily seen. You will see
stretches of coast that can appear white, red, green or black.

Gary Greenberg has been taking pictures of sand and has compiled
his best photographs into a book called
“A Grain of Sand: Nature’s Secret Wonder.” I like what Geology.com has
done on its website, offering a glimpse of Greenberg’s photos,
telling us where the sand was found and describing the types of
particles depicted.

Taking microscopic art a step further, micro sculptor Willard
Wigan transforms grains of sand, bits of dust and hairs from
insects to produce amazingly small sculptures that can bring in
hundreds of thousands of dollars. You may have already seen his
amazing story told on various television shows, including the video
shown here from the Wall Street Journal. You can view Wigan’s
online gallery
of more than 50 tiny sculptures on the artist’s website.

“It began when I was five years old. I started making houses for
ants because I thought they needed somewhere to live. Then I made
them shoes and hats. It was a fantasy world I escaped to where my
dyslexia didn’t hold me back and my teachers couldn’t criticize me.
That’s how my career as a micro-sculptor began.”

Wigan, who cannot read or write, found another way to express
himself. In an interview with Nick Watts of ABC News, Wigans noted:

“The teachers at school made me feel small. They made me feel
like nothing. I’m trying to prove to the world that nothing doesn’t
exist.”